Biden vows government shutdown won't stop Colorado flood aid

By Bruce Finley, The Denver Post

Posted:
09/23/2013 05:04:57 PM MDT

GREELEY, Colo. — Vice President Joe Biden promised Monday afternoon that even if the "disfunction of Congress" results in a shut down of the federal government, FEMA resource centers and and hotlines still will aid Colorado flood victims.

"It's probably going to scare the living devil out of you," Biden said of the negotiations over the debt ceiling that threaten to paralyze the government.

But, he said, "there will be someone on the other end of the line who will walk you through."

Helicopters carrying Biden, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, FEMA administrator Craig Fugate and other state and federal officials flew from Buckley Air Force Base west to the foothills

The first stop was Jamestown, which was destroyed by a wall of mud that flowed down during the first night of flooding. The helicopters looped back to Lyons, which was stranded when two creeks broke from their banks.

Lanes of U.S. 36 were washed away in some places in the North St. Vrain Canyon; in others, the entire road is gone. Down the nearby Big Thompson Canyon, U.S. 34 is a patch work of damaged and destroyed highway, too.

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Nearly 2,000 square miles in 17 Colorado counties were inundated by flooding that began Sept. 11 in the Front Range foothills and spread east along the South Platte River to Nebraska. Some towns along the South Platte remain under flood advisories.

The Monday flight covered many of the areas hardest hit by floods. The tour also took Biden over big forest fire burn zones in Boulder and Larimer counties.

After more than an hour in the air, Biden and the others landed at Weld County Airport northeast of Greeley.

At the FEMA resource center, members of Colorado's congressional delegation, including U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet and Reps. Michael Coffman, Cory Gardner and Jared Polis, reviewed maps of the areas Biden and Hickenlooper had just flown over.

Biden said he and Hickenlooper chatted on the helicopter about the damage he saw after ocean storms throttled East Coast communities. "Everything was uprooted," he said. "It is amazing what (water) does."

Fugate led Biden into the FEMA assistance center where volunteers with laptops took applications from flood victims and offered guidance about the process of qualifying for federal aid.

"Together we can usually solve the problem here," Fugate said.

Biden talked to the volunteers, thanking them for their work. "You do an incredible job."

He contrasted this FEMA operation with those during Hurricane Katrina. "You've done an incredible job in terms of one-stop shopping. That's how it is supposed to work," Biden said. "You guys are the ones making it happen."

Damage assessments continue, but so far 1,882 homes are confirmed destroyed and 16,101 are believed to be damaged. According to preliminary state estimates, about 765 commercial structures are damaged and at least 203 are destroyed.

Transportation officials estimate 200 road-miles are damaged, as well as 50 bridges. So far, $35 million in federal grants and $100 million from the state transportation contingency fund has been freed to begin emergency repairs on roads and bridges before winter sets in.

"That's obviously not going to be enough," Biden said. "We are going to keep working with the governor ... until we make you whole."